NFL superstar's new warning to rugby convert Louis Rees-Zammit

NFL superstar Travis Kelce has issued a warning to Louis Rees-Zammit as the rugby union convert attempts to transition to American football.

While Kelce is positive about the Welshman’s potential, he refused to shy away from the challenges LRZ will face as he tries to make it in the NFL.

The official line is that Rees-Zammit (23) wants to secure a spot on the Kansas City Chiefs’ 53-man roster as a receiver or running back, though this is considered by many to be something of a long shot.

The inside line from NFL experts is that special teams could offer LRZ a more realistic route to playing time in his debut year, although he will almost certainly feature in pre-season games later this year, barring injury.

Kelce (34) has been mentoring Rees-Zammit, drawing on his own extensive experience in the league and has advised Rees-Zammit to be patient,

“It’s gonna be a humbling experience at first,” Kelce told reporters recently. “It’s not easy to just make that jump”.

“They’re two completely different games,” said the tightend. “But he is an athlete, and that’s what the Chiefs saw. He’s a smart kid, a smart player, so he’s going to be able to pick up the offence eventually, but it’s going to be a tough few months for him here while he’s getting acclimated to the NFL.

“We’ve been doing this since we were kids. We’ve been playing this game, so we just have those little instincts that we’ve built over the years that he has to start to catch up with. The biggest advice I gave him was just try not to let it overwhelm you as much as it can. Just know that everybody believes that you have the potential to be able to play. So just absorb as much as you can, learn as much as you can in the short time that you’ll have before the season.”

Despite the obvious hurdles facing the Welshman, Kelce is optimistic that Rees-Zammit’s athleticism and work ethic will give him the best possible shot at cracking the new code.

If the former Gloucester winger does not make the final roster by the end of the pre-season in August, he has an agreement to remain with the Chiefs through their International Pathways Program, which should span three seasons.

#Chiefs RB Louis Rees-Zammit admits he’s never played softball before then promptly hits a home run #ChiefsKingdom pic.twitter.com/1O00ZNnKNW

— Starcade Media (@StarcadeMediaKC) June 7, 2024

The former British & Irish Lions tourist was filmed this week participating in a charity softball match and of course, he hit a home run with his first swing, despite having never hit a ball with a bat before in his life other than cricket.